


the deafening silence of anxiety [will drown out the prettiest sounds]

by deuynndrabbles (kyoukaalldey)



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Gen, Hurt No Comfort, Identity Reveal, half of one at least, maddie thinks dannys dead and angsty shit happens
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-12 07:20:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29256588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyoukaalldey/pseuds/deuynndrabbles
Summary: "Maddie, I have something to confess to you," Vlad says, eyes darting around the room and not once making contact with Maddie's solid gaze. "The portal did more than hospitalize me."Vlad then launches into a brief explanation of halfas - making sure to mention the complete divide yet mesh of ghost and human, and the rarity of its occurrence. His speech is rehearsed, and it leaves Danny confused.Whatever happened to their deal? There has to be some ulterior motive here, he's sure of it.[Or: a simple plan has two possible outcomes. Both lead to a win for the side that doesn't deserve it.]
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 78





	the deafening silence of anxiety [will drown out the prettiest sounds]

**Author's Note:**

> title from [a conversation about identity by tea](https://open.spotify.com/track/7uxLaYX3VYYSyG3ghpjqXi?si=3SRaQRrASLGV2PQP9beSnA&utm_source=copy-link)!
> 
> thanks to [bibliophilea](https://bibliophilea.tumblr.com) for betaing!!
> 
> huehuehue this is based on an idea that i had waking up and i thought it was neat so i tried to do something for it. its def not thought out at all but well thats what you get when you listen to your half asleep self about a fic idea
> 
> hope you enjoy! folks who have read the doc say it hurts so. fair warning ig

When Vlad comes to Fentonworks with all the grace of a gentleman, Danny doesn't know what to expect.

"Maddie, my dear, may I have a conversation with you?"

His mother narrows her eyes, failing to disguise her suspicion, but ushers Danny out of the room and sits down, hands folded on the couch.

Vlad takes a seat as Danny peeks around the corner, invisible.

"Maddie, I have something to confess to you," Vlad says, eyes darting around the room and not once making contact with Maddie's solid gaze. "The portal did more than hospitalize me."

Vlad then launches into a brief explanation of halfas - making sure to mention the complete divide yet mesh of ghost and human, and the rarity of its occurrence. His speech is rehearsed, and it leaves Danny confused.

Whatever happened to their deal? There has to be some ulterior motive here, he's sure of it.

Vlad bows his head politely, saying, "I'd like your help in continuing my research into halfas."

Maddie's hand twitches toward the handgun resting in the pocket of her hazmat, but doesn't do more than that. "What are you implying?"

"Ah, simply that you come to live with me. Jack can use this lab, and I can get you much better, state of the art equipment and tools."

(Maddie knows what he's implying. She's seen the way the other man eyes her husband.)

Danny's breath stops in his throat. He bites his lip and waits for his mother's inevitable response.

(Maddie won't stand for it.)

"No, Vlad. I don't believe you."

(Danny lets out the breath he's been holding and sinks in relief.)

"Half human, half ghost? Something like that couldn't exist. _Shouldn't_."

(Danny inhales sharply.)

"Now get out of my house."

Unbelievably, Vlad rises from his seat. He walks in unsteady but confident strides to the door. Unease seeps off him in waves - Danny can taste it in the air, but that doesn't matter.

What does matter is when Vlad pauses before reaching for the doorknob. He meets eyes with Danny head-on, and lets a small smirk grace his face before stepping out the door.

(Ulterior motive, indeed.)

* * *

Absentmindedly, Danny drapes his hand over the railing and makes his way up the stairs, barely deigning to raise his feet, and stumbles through his bedroom door.

He collapses stomach-first onto the bed, making the springs complain and the bed shake with his weight. He rolls over onto his back, mind blank.

'So much for acceptance', he figures.

Pulling his knees to his chest, he shifts his weight up into a sitting position. Reaching over and grabbing his pillow, he wraps his arms around it and tucks his head into the pillow, making it so the only sense he can use is hearing.

There's a gentle knock at the door, and before Danny can think about it, he mumbles into his pillow. "Come in." (Jeez, he needs to wash these.)

Maddie comes in, slippers padding on the blue carpet. Danny doesn't look up to see her expression. He doesn't want to.

"Honey, you were right about Vlad."

Her tone is sickenly sardonic. His bed creaks as his mother sits down next to him, curling her head onto his shoulder. He closes his eyes, but it makes no difference when his face is shoved into a pillow.

"No wonder. He's a ghost."

Danny bites his lip, a barely audible groan/whine/sigh mix coming from his throat.

Maddie hears him, and moves to wrap her arms around him. "Danny, are you okay?" She asks softly, her hair falling into his face.

Danny stiffens at the touch, letting go of the pillow. He flickers intangible just long enough to pull out of the hug and stumbles onto the rug with clumsy feet, not turning to look at her.

(Might as well stop hiding now, right?)

"No," he says, and it's the first time he's told the truth to that question in a long time.

Tapping into his core, he slides into invisibility and slips away.

* * *

Maddie is-

Maddie doesn't know.

She sits there, still - frozen, even. Her breath is caught in her throat and she has to tell herself to breathe, but that idle command is nothing compared to what's running through her head.

Those powers: they're those of a _ghost_.

But Danny - he's not a ghost. He didn't die.

Maddie reassures herself by repeating those thoughts, trying to make it believable.

But that doesn't hide the fact that humans can't do that.

Unless a ghost kidnapped him? But no, that can't be possible - Danny was in complete control of whatever just happened.

She really doesn't know what to think.

Stewing there for a second in her thoughts, she finally settles upon an answer. The conclusion pains her to make. But it's better than being clueless.

Maddie heaves a sigh, rises from the bed, and pads downstairs to use the home phone.

* * *

A dial tone.

"Amity Park Funeral Home, how may I help you?"

* * *

Danny's in his ghost form - which is odd, because he doesn't recall transforming. 

He bites his lip, sighing, and shifts to curl tighter into a ball.

The quiet night air hangs in the sky, almost. The stars are obscured by the fog, the _animosity_ sitting in the atmosphere. Every breath Danny exhales comes out in a puff of white, and a gentle wind blows through the branches of the tree he's perched on.

It's silent. That presses on his ears more than any cacophony could.

(Though at the same time, the silence is nice. It's. . . peaceful. Eye in the storm, a second away from all the madness. He sure needs it, anyway.)

The boy doesn't know how long he's been here, and he doesn't really want to. He likes moments like these.

The wind brushes a branch into Danny's forearm, and he winces, pushing it away but not deigning to move more than his shoulder. It snaps back into place, and Danny relaxes at the motion.

Leaning over slightly, he peers down into the fog. Deciding to take a seat in the grass, he raises his feet and drifts down, landing on the sidewalk softly with no more sound than a mouse could make.

Shifting his gaze to the ground, he kicks a rock idly so it skids across the grass. It bounces and skips, making a _plink_ sound as it rebounds against a grave.

Danny doesn't remember that being there before.

(This spot is his spot, really. It may just be a corner of the cemetery, but it's somehow relieving. That fact scares him only slightly, but the pure calm he feels when here is enough to offset that fear.

He's been here enough to remember every inch of this place. A new grave is something he needs to check out.)

He steps forward onto the grass, reading what's inscribed.

> Daniel (Danny) Fenton
> 
> July 7th 2003, April 3rd 2018

Danny takes a step back.

And another.

No. That's- That's not true, he's not _dead_ -

Suddenly warmth sweeps over him and his heart is suddenly filling his ears with its steady _thump_ , drowning out the silence and his chest heaving.

He's _human_.

"I'm human," Danny assures himself.

It falls short.

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoyed!! please give me much needed dopamine by leaving a comment, bonus points if you say it hurt a lot
> 
> _links_  
> [discord server](https://discord.gg/hB6VS7aC9h) | [tumblr](https://deuynndoodles.tumblr.com)


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